Page 7 of Broken Vow

He did not rush. He moved with the same measured grace he used in the water, giving his full, patient attention to my body until the pleasure coiling within me reached a breaking point.

The tension shattered. Every muscle in my body yielded at once, a wave of sensation crashing over me as my hands lost their grip on his hair. Above, the pink canopy blurred into a haze before settling back into distinct blossoms as I breathed through the shock of it.

I lay back on the grass, taking shallow, uneven breaths. Drystan moved up along my body, kissing his way back up the path he had taken. He pressed his lips to my belly, my ribs, the rise of my chest, and the sensitive dip below my ear, before settling above me.

His dark eyes searched mine.

“Are you with me?” he asked softly, his voice low.

“Yes,” I whispered.

He kissed my lips gently, the taste of my own skin lingering between us, carrying a profound, silent understanding.

My body welcomed his weight as he settled into the cradle of my hips. The warmth of his skin against mine brought a final, grounding clarity to the moment. While the village girls had spoken of this joining with dread, I felt only a deep sense of completion.

The women of my village had offered stern warnings about this act, speaking of pain and blood as an unavoidable toll. I had carried that quiet apprehension for years.

Drystan caught the subtle shadow on my face and paused, looking down at me with quiet concern.

“Share your fear with me, my love, so I might ease it,” he said. “If you do not want this, we stop.”

I found my voice, quiet yet firm. “I want this. I was only afraid of what I was told it would be.”

Understanding softened his features. He pressed a slow kiss to my forehead, his hand moving to cup my cheek.

“I will care for you,” he murmured. “I will go slowly. Tell me if anything feels wrong, and I will stop.”

“Promise me.”

“I promise you.”

I nodded, resting my hand against his jaw. Seeing my certainty, the tension left his shoulders. He held me still for a moment, letting our breathing align before he gently pressed forward.

There was a brief resistance, followed by a firm, persistent pressure. It was not the sharp tearing the village girls had warned of, but a slow, intense expansion, my body opening to accommodate him. I drew a sharp breath, and he instantly held still, waiting without a word while I adjusted to his presence. His hand remained steady against my face, his eyes fixed on mine.

“Are you with me?” he asked softly.

“Yes.”

“Tell me if it is too much.”

“It is not too much.”

The initial tightness receded, replaced by a profound sense of fullness that filled me completely. I felt anchored, held with an absolute reverence.

He began to move, setting a slow, deliberate pace. His eyes remained locked on mine, reading every subtle shift in my expression and adjusting his movements to my comfort. The rhythm grew natural, a shared cadence that bound us together.

I met his motion, my hips rising to meet his, my hands securing him tightly by the shoulders. The soft sounds slipping from my throat drew a low, shuddering breath from his chest.

Above us, the cherry blossom branches swayed, framing the blue sky as petals drifted through the warm air. The bond we had recognized beneath the water found its physical reality here, two lives joining together through heat, movement, and breath.

He whispered something against my temple, the words lost to the heavy thud of my heart, but the emotion behind the sound was undeniable.

The heat within me surged once more, rising like a sudden wind over open fields. The peak arrived, larger and deeper than before, carrying me over the crest. Drystan followed immediately, his breath catching as his hands tightened on my hips, a low sound breaking from his throat that I knew I would remember forever.

We lay still together, drawing in the warm air as our pulses slowly quieted. Petals continued to fall around us, covering the grass in soft pink.

I lost track of time as he rested his weight against me, his face buried in the curve of my neck. The sun warmed our skin while the earth held us.